Information for Transfer Students

Fresh Start

Texas Senate Bill 1321, entitled "Right to An Academic Fresh Start"
allows a person who is a resident of Texas to apply for
undergraduate admission and not have coursework completed 10 or more
years prior to the date of anticipated enrollment included as
consideration in the admission decision. This allows undergraduate
students to begin a new course of study with a clear academic
record.

Note: This is an all or nothing option. You are not
able to pick and choose which courses to ignore and which
courses to count. If you choose the "Academic Fresh Start" option, you
will not receive any credit for any courses you took 10 or
more years ago.

This means that

Courses taken previously cannot be used to fulfill new prerequisite requirements.

Courses taken previously cannot be counted towards your new degree.

Courses taken previously will not be counted in your new GPA calculations.

The provision does not affect coursework completed between the 10 year prior date and the new enrollment date.

Even if you choose the Academic Fresh Start option, you must still
complete the usual admissions process, including providing
information on all colleges or universities previously attended and
providing official copies of transcripts from all schools you
attended. Nothing in the law prohibits a public university from applying
standard admissions requirements.

Students under the Fresh Start provision must still meet the criteria for the
Texas Success Initiative
unless they have met one of the exemptions. The
Academic Fresh Start provision does not affect Texas Success Initiative
exemptions claimed on the basis of college credit earned
prior to September 1989.

Additional notes:

Academic Fresh Start may be claimed only upon application to UT Arlington and will not be applicable to currently enrolled
UT Arlington students.

Once enrolled, Academic Fresh Start may only be requested upon
application for readmission to the University. Students can apply
for readmission and request Fresh Start only after resigning for one
calendar year. The Fresh Start application must be completed and
granted prior to re-enrolling.

Once the "Right to an Academic Fresh Start" provision has been claimed, and the student has enrolled, the provision cannot be
reversed.

An applicant may use the Academic Fresh Start provision only once at UT Arlington.

Applying for Fresh Start

Students must submit an application for Fresh Start prior to
enrollment at the University, preferably at the time they apply for
admission or re-admission. Students will not be granted Fresh Start
until they have completed their admissions file and been admitted
to the University.

Download and print an Application for Fresh Start.
The application should be completed, signed, and mailed to the Admissions Office. Alternately, the application may be completed at the Admissions office during
regular office hours. See our contact information for mailing address, location, and hours. Visitor parking is available.

Acceptance of Fresh Start Application

The final authority on applying or interpreting Texas Education Code
51.931, Right to an Academic Fresh Start is the UT Arlington
Director of Admissions. When the Fresh Start application is approved,
the UT Arlington Registrar's office will be notified and upon
enrollment, a message will be posted to the student's academic record
indicating admission has been granted through the Academic
Fresh Start provision. If the student was previously enrolled at UT
Arlington, the grade point average will be changed on the academic
record for any coursework completed here 10 or more years prior to the
re-enrollment date. The original courses or grades will not be
considered in the grade point average, but they will remain on the UT
Arlington academic record.

Effect on Financial Aid

Academic Fresh Start clears only your academic record. When deciding your eligibility for financial aid, the school must still
count all prior credits earned.

Students who earned a graduate degree prior to enrolling as an undergraduate under the Academic Fresh Start option will only be
eligible for aid available to graduate students.

Please contact the UT Arlington Financial Aid office at 817-272-3561 if you have any questions.

Effect on Post-Graduate or Professional Programs

Admissions staff for master's, doctoral, or other professional degree
programs at public universities shall consider only the
grade point average of the applicant established by the course work
completed after enrollment under Academic Fresh Start, along with
any other criteria the institution uses in evaluating applicants for
admission into the postgraduate or professional program.

Credits and GPA earned prior to the student's Academic Fresh Start
will not be used to evaluate applicants for admission into the
postgraduate or professional program.

Note, nothing in the law prohibits a public university from applying standard admissions requirements.